Without Disclosing My True Identity
for the “church of the devil,” otherwise ushered in as an historical period known as the
“Great Renaissance.”
Mormons erroneously assume the Book of Mormon mentions Columbus^16 when
referring to “a man among the Gentiles”...and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down
and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of
my brethren, who were in the promised land.”^17 The record goes on to say, “And it came to
pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went
forth out of captivity, upon the many waters.”^18 Columbus wasn’t in captivity! Neither were
any of the European explorers at the time.^19
The “captivity” from whence these people “went forth,” was the captivity already
described by Nephi before he mentions this “man among the Gentiles” “:
And the angel said unto me: Behold the formation of a church which is most
abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea,
and tortureth them and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a yoke of
iron, and bringeth them down into captivity.^20This “captivity” was tied to a spiritual captivity and the nature of being yoked to the
desires of the flesh—the great and abominable church—that caused one to seek for the
things of the world instead of the kingdom of God on earth. In other words, there were a
few people (very few) who wanted a simple, unfettered life of peace and happiness. The
“yoke of iron” that the Great Renaissance offered these people was a burden to them when
compared with the “yoke” of the Lamb of God:
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in
heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my
burden is light.^21There were a few native European “Gentiles” who were determined to cast off the
“yoke of iron” encumbering them by their birth nation, and to take up the “easy” yoke of
the Lamb of God. The “man among the Gentiles” who is mentioned in the Book of Mormon
was not Columbus, but rather, the English-born George Fox (1624–1691).^22 He was among
those Europeans that English history portrayed as a dissenter.^23 Dissenters were people who
no longer accepted the state church with its burgeoning worldliness and emerging class
distinctions that resulted in great inequalities between the rich and poor. Some early
examples of dissenters were the Pilgrims, Puritans, and the Quakers. George Fox’s own
journal relates how the “Spirit of God came down and wrought upon him”:
But as I had forsaken the priests, so I left the separate preachers also, and those
esteemed the most experienced people; for I saw there was none among them
all that could speak to my condition.^24 And when all my hopes in them and in
all men were gone, so that I had nothing outwardly to help me, nor could tell
what to do, then, oh, then, I heard a voice which said, “There is one, even
Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition”; and when I heard it my heart did
leap for joy. Then the Lord let me see why there was none upon the earth that
could speak to my condition, namely, that I might give Him all the glory; for